1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a recording medium loading device for loading into the body of the device a package which contains a single or plural disks such as CD, CD-ROM, DVD, and/or PD, or a package which contains recording means other than disks.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the body of a loading device into which is loaded, for example, a disk package containing a plurality of disks, there are provided an eject member which urges in an ejecting direction the disk package after insertion and a lock mechanism which locks the package in the device body to prevent ejection of the package.
According to a conventional structure of the lock mechanism, the disk package is formed with a guide groove extending in the direction of insertion into the device body and is also formed with a lock groove contiguous to the guide groove.
Also, in a package loading area of the device body is provided a lock projection which is urged in a direction of engagement with the lock groove.
Therefore, when the disk package is inserted into the package loading area, the lock projection and side walls of the guide groove slide while the lock projection is kept in pressure contact elastically with the side walls of the guide groove, and when the disk package has been loaded up to the final position, the lock projection is fitted in the lock groove, whereby the disk package is locked in a loaded state in the package loading area.
It is necessary to provide a detection switch for electrically detecting that the disk package has been loaded completely. In this case, if the detection switch can be operated by a lock member having the aforesaid lock projection, then when the lock member has turned to the position where the lock projection can be engaged with the lock groove, the output of the detection switch is changed over by the lock member to detect that the loading of the disk package has been completed.
However, the conventional disk package loading device described above involves the following problems.
(1) When the disk package is inserted into the body of the device, the lock projection undergoes an urging force of an urging member and slides while being kept in pressure contact elastically with the side walls of the guide groove formed in the disk package, so that the insertion load of the disk package becomes large. Particularly, when the disk package is inserted into an insertion port of the device body, it is necessary that the lock projection which undergoes the urging force be inserted forcibly into the guide groove, thus resulting in that the resistance at the beginning of the insertion becomes large.
(2) When the lock projection lies in the lock groove of the disk package, the lock projection is in elastic pressure contact with wall portions of the guide groove and therefore it cannot be used as a guide member during insertion of the disk package. Consequently, there arises the necessity of providing a large number of guide projections other than the lock projection, thus leading to an increase in the number and density of components arranged in the package loading area.
(3) In the device of the type in which the detection switch is actuated by the lock member, the detection switch is changed over when the disk package is loaded into the package loading area and the lock projection comes into engagement with the lock groove, but also when the disk package is taken out, the lock member turns and the detection switch is changed over. That is, between the time when the disk package is loaded and the time when it is taken out there is no difference in the state of change-over of the detection switch. Therefore, just after turning ON of a power supply, it is impossible to distinguish whether the disk package is loaded or is taken out.
The above problems arise not only in package loading devices containing disk packages but also in package loading devices containing other recording mediums than disk packages.